Dharamshala: - One Tibetan died and two other serious injured by setting themselves on fire in Serta county, eastern Tibet in protests against Chinese rule on February 3, weeks after armed Chinese forces troops opened fire on a crowd of Tibetan protesters in the region, leaving six dead, several others seriously wounded. One of them reportedly died on the spot but his identity and details are still unknown, according to an information received by The Tibet Post International. Total twenty self-immolations in protest against Chinese rule in Tibet since Feb 2009.

Oh my heart! Oh, my life! How can this happen! What can I do? I’m overwhelmed as I watch a video of the brave and passionate Tibetan Buddhist nun Palden Choetso standing in the street, burning herself as a human torch. I want to respond, to douse her flames. It’s impossible. So too is it to salute her for her bravery, for her faith in love, for her determination, and her belief that peace is possible. Did she cry out for freedom? For herself? Her people? Her land? Her nation? For her beloved lama, teacher, and savior?

I watch as an elegant laywoman, a passerby startled and gripped with horror, manages to quickly take a white khata greeting scarf out of her bag, a traditional offering of goodwill and respect. She waves the scarf toward the stock-still flaming nun and then offers it into the fire as Palden Choetso passes out, dying in agony, her body crumpling to the ground. I also offer a khata from my heart.

BEIJING — An 18-year-old Tibetan nun has set herself on fire in western China in the latest such protest against Beijing’s handling of the vast ethnic Tibetan regions it rules, an overseas activist group said Sunday.

Free Tibet said in a statement that the nun had died after setting set herself ablaze Saturday. The young woman, identified as Tenzin Choedon, was a nun at the Mamae Nunnery in Sichuan province’s Aba prefecture, the group said.

On the streets of Aba, ranks of paramilitary police armed with guns, batons and spiked clubs keep a watchful eye on Buddhist monks in crimson robes. After a 10-hour drive across the Tibetan plateau, Jonathan Watts was able to get into the town undetected and witness how the authorities are trying to extinguish dissent with fire engines, riot police and patriotic 're-education' campaigns

How foolish you are, grasping the letter of the text and ignoring its intention! - Vasubandhu

Every bit of this choked me up. I hope something comes through for them soon. How very sad to see this still happening to people.

"Sona, before you became a monk you were a musician". Sona said that was true. So the Buddha said, "As a musician which string of the lute produces a pleasant and harmonious sound. The over-tight string?" "No," said Sona, "The over-tight string produces an unpleasant sound and is moreover likely to break at any moment." "The string that is too loose?" Again, "No, the string that is too loose does not produce a tuneful sound. The string that produces a tuneful sound is the string that is not too tight and not too loose."

(New York) – The Chinese government should immediately release Tibetans who have been detained by local police and are being forced to undergo political re-education after travelling to India to listen to religious teachings there, Human Rights Watch said today.

Many have been detained since February 6, 2012, in ad hoc detention centers in Lhasa and other areas. Multiple sources told Human Rights Watch that several hundred Tibetans may have been detained in the current sweep, but the exact number is not known. The same sources described the political re-education the detainees are subjected to. No information is available about how long the detainees will be held, but people with knowledge of the detentions in Lhasa say the detentions are expected to last from 20 days to three months.

"Tibetan monk self-immolates in protest against raid by Chinese authorities"

Dharamsala (AsiaNews / Agencies) - A Tibetan monk set himself on fire yesterday afternoon, to protest against intrusion of Chinese security forces in a monastery in the western province of Qinghai, the man died from severe burns and his gesture has helped to fuel anxiety and anger against Beijing's occupation of the Tibetan region. This is the 22nd confirmed self-immolation, since protests against Chinese policies began in February 2009, according to other sources, the number has reached 25, but there is no official confirmation because of the censorship imposed by China. Meanwhile, the tragic protest by Tibetan Buddhists has gained the support of the highest religious figure in Vietnam, who says the repression in Tibet is "a challenge to all humanity."

'I have just returned from Lhasa. Tibetans are disappearing; everyone is terrified about the bloodshed which seems inevitable.Lhasa consists of approximately 1.2 million Chinese and approximately 200,000 Tibetans. The majority of these Tibetans live in an area which is now almost entirely enclosed by military compounds with walls between 10-16 feet; some with barbed wire. This isolation gives the impression of what the Warsaw Ghetto was like. Inside the “enclosed” area groups of armed soldiers, S.W.A.T. teams, and police patrol the streets 24 hours a day. Military drill songs can be heard throughout the day. S.W.A.T trucks and rows of 6 to 15 armored vehicles and tanks come through the area on a daily basis. Each vehicle has 3 to 4 soldiers at the opening turret, armed with assault rifles or machine guns aimed at the Tibetans.'

The Kala Chakra Ceremony in November 2011, held in Bodh Gaya, India by His Holiness the Dalai Lama, was attended by approximately 10,000 Tibetans from China. Among these were reportedly 3000 Government informants. The remaining 7000 Tibetans from China, on returning to Tibet via India, Nepal, Hong Kong, etc. were ALL brought to reeducation camps for a minimum of three months. Elderly people begged to go home in the evenings due to the cold, but they were not allowed. In many instances when family members brought blankets for their elderly family, they were told they were no longer there and the authorities didn’t know where they were. Among the 7000 Tibetans in reeducation camps, interrogation from the chinese police was common practice. Tibetans are made to disclose their jobs (from which they are fired), loose pensions or other such benefits, disclose names of relatives and their contact information, including addresses and professions. Random identification checks and House searches are done; family members are brought in for “questioning”.

Approximately 50 nuns going to a retreat on a bus, were detained and held for questioning after an informant accused them of speaking against the government. Their whereabouts are presently unknown.A Tibetan artist who painted a Tibetan looking upwards towards a clock above their head, titled “Waiting” was arrested for the symbolism used in the painting.I was told that many people were taken away by the State Security and don’t come back. They just disappear.

Although it is listed as a World Heritage site, the chinese government now uses the Potala as a military post. A large Military complex is situated within several blocks. The nunnery, located across from grounds before the Potala Palace, now has Military bunkers.

Tibet and Syria are tragic events. Unfortunately, China supports Syria in the UN, which means they have a callous attitude towards people suffering and being killed. Thus, I feel that the Chinese government is callous about the self immolation; although, they apparently do not appreciate the bad publicity. They my consider the death of a Tibetan monk as one less problem.

I would like the self immolation to stop, because I believe it has no affect on the Chinese government. Although, I empathize with a monk who feels so hopeless that they must protest by self immolation.

The only way to change either the Syrian or Tibetan circumstance is to change the mindset of their respective governments. Unfortunately, changing anyone's mindset is extremely difficult. For example, try changing the mindset of a born-again Christian to believe in another religion (e.g., Hindu).

Including indigenous religions of Africa and the Americas and Atheism, there may be thousands of different beliefs. The main reason a person believes a particular religion is that their parents taught them to believe it. No one can rationally argue that their belief is any more correct than another--a belief has no rational basis. Many people will die rather than change their beliefs. Thus, reason cannot help either the Syrians or Tibetans. I lament that the insanity of killing and oppressing people who do not believe as those in power will continue.

HHDL: "My confidence in venturing into science lies in my basic belief that as in science so in Buddhism, understanding the nature of reality is pursued by means of critical investigation: if scientific analysis were conclusively to demonstrate certain claims in Buddhism to be false, then we must accept the findings of science and abandon those claims."

Please keep this thread specifically for "News on Tibet". Members are free to start a topic/s elsewhere, in the Lounge for example, for the purpose of discussion on political situations around the globe. Thanks for your co-operation.

Seoul, South Korea -- The central council of the Jogye Order called the oppression of Tibet by the Chinese government “a situation in which we cannot ignore” and was appalled by the Oppression of Tibet and Tibetan people by the Chinese government and urged for the early withdrawal of Chinese troops, release of political prisoners, act of fidelity towards Buddhist monks, and to end forced migration policy.

Tashi Delek to Tibetans and friends around the world! Warm Losar greetings from Dharamsala, which falls on February 22.

As requested, please do not celebrate Losar this year, but do observe traditional and spiritual rituals by going to the monastery, making offerings, and lighting butter lamps for all those Tibetans inside Tibet who have sacrificed and suffered under the repressive policies of the Chinese government.

BEIJING — Three Tibetans killed themselves by self-immolation in two different Tibetan regions of western China over the past three days, to protest China’s repression of Tibet, according to reports by Tibetan exile groups and Radio Free Asia, which is financed by the United States government.

The three deaths — a man and two women — bring the number of Tibetans who have set fire to themselves in western China since March 2011 to at least 25; at least 17 have died.

Tara wrote:Please keep this thread specifically for "News on Tibet". Members are free to start a topic/s elsewhere, in the Lounge for example, for the purpose of discussion on political situations around the globe. Thanks for your co-operation.

Regards

How foolish you are, grasping the letter of the text and ignoring its intention! - Vasubandhu